James Maddison showed on his return to the Tottenham starting eleven why he is arguably the most important player for the club, and the numbers back it up.While Roberto De Zerbi’s side have dominated territorially and have had more possession in almost all their games this season, their main issue has been in the final third.At times, they have lacked the quality to fashion openings once they get to the edge of the box, and when they have created chances, they have lacked the killer instinct to finish them off.Maddison showed on his return to the starting eleven that he helps solve both problems, with the 29-year-old reminding everyone why he is one of the best in the Premier League in his position.J. MaddisonTottenham – Premier League (2024 – 2025)Appearances31Minutes Played1817Average Rating7.33Goals9Assists7Passes1147Key Passes42Duels Won133Successful Dribbles33Yellow Cards6Red Cards0Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty ImagesTottenham’s win percentage more than doubles when James Maddison startsMaddison opened the scoring with a lovely curled finish into the top corner in the 14th minute against Coventry, which was the first time this season the Lilywhites have taken the lead in the Premier League.The England international also always wanted the ball and looked to play through balls in behind the opposition defence, which none of the other midfielders at the club is adept at doing.Sky Sports have now provided a stat which shows just how important Maddison is to the North Londoners. Spurs have won 25 of their 48 games that the 29-year-old started, giving them a win percentage of 52.1.However, without the former Leicester man in their starting eleven, they have won just 17 of 73 matches, which gives them a win percentage of just 23.3.Spurs’ record with and without James Maddison ⭐️ (via Opta) https://t.co/NoZHFz3aGt— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) October 20, 2026Why this Maddison stat is slightly misleadingIt is worth noting that the last 18-month period where Maddison did not start a game also included a significant period where Tottenham were decimated by several other injuries.The attacking midfielder played most of the 2023-24 season, when Spurs managed to avoid too many major injuries and finish fifth.So the win percentages are a bit skewed due to that, but there is no doubt that the Lilywhites are a much more threatening team when Maddison starts.Tottenham’s attack suddenly looks much more formidable now that Maddison is back to full fitness and Dejan Kulusevski has returned from injury. Saturday 24th October Premier League ChelseaChelsea17:30TottenhamTottenham Saturday 31st October Premier League TottenhamTottenham17:30Crystal PalaceCrystal Palace Saturday 7th November Premier League LeedsLeeds12:30TottenhamTottenham Saturday 21st November Premier League TottenhamTottenham15:00IpswichIpswich Sunday 29th November Premier League SunderlandSunderland14:05TottenhamTottenhamREAD MORE: Tottenham star makes Team of the Week to give De Zerbi a Chelsea selection headacheThe post Tottenham’s record with and without James Maddison paints a picture of hope for De Zerbi appeared first on Spurs Web.